Birch – Consumable Earth

Scientific names

Betula papyrifera (paper birch)
Betula occidentalis (water birch)
Betula glandulosa var. glandulosa (scrub birch)
Betula glandulosa va. gladulifera (swamp birch)

French name: bouleau

Secwepemc name: qweqwllillenllp
(all birch trees) – pronunciation

Tree lore: Lady of the Woods
She is the ancestral spirit of the land

There are several species of birch in our region with all being part of the Betulacae family which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams.

The largest and most easily recognized are the paper birch which can reach heights of 30-40m tall. They routinely hybridize with other species of birch, most commonly with water birch which are much smaller and more shrub like.

Others are scrub birch aka bog birch and swamp birch aka dwarf birch which are more shrub like than the tall paper birch.

Significance to people

The bark of large paper birch trees was and still is used to make baskets, cradles, toboggans and canoes.

Here in Kamloops the Secwepemc make soap and shampoo from birch leaves

Birch sap is often harvested and drank as a tonic or beverage.

The Okanagan people differentiated paper birch from water birch and used the latter mainly for firewood.

Significance to ecosystems

Fast growing and short-lived. It quickly cycles nutrients and provides a lot of organic matter through fallen leaves, catkins and berries to build soil.

Birch will rapidly regrow in wet disturbed open areas and are highly adaptable so long as their water and sunlight needs are met.

Pure birch stands provide a natural firebreak and reduce the frequency of fires as opposed to where birch and conifers are mixed together.

These trees are powerful eco-system restorers and have been used by Europeans in landscaping for generations.

Significance to animals

Deer, moose and rabbits browse on its tender branches.

The seeds are food for many birds come fall. Grouse are known to eat both buds and seeds.

Birch often grow near streams, lakes and marshes providing habitat for both birds and mammals.

Where to find them:

Look low to find birch along water courses and on moist parts of plateaus at mid-elevation.

It loves an open canopy and is unlikely to be found in the shade. It often is the first tree to regrow in moist disturbed or logged forests and is a bit of an opportunist what foresters call a ‘pioneer species’.

In our dry climate birch is restricted to places where the water table is high. It is extremely frost tolerant but cannot withstand long periods of saturated or dry soils. It loves rich soils and enhances the soil where ever it is found.

Birch can be found growing amongst a wide variety of trees, it is very friendly and loves to grow in stands with many many other birch trees.

paper birch bark
water birch bark
swamp birch bark
dwarf birch bark
water birch leaves
swamp birch leaves
dwarf birch leaves
scrub/dwarf birch leaves

Identification

Paper birch is easily recognized by its peeling white bark.

Birch tree leaves are triangular and with shrubs being more oval shaped with highly serrated margins (edges).

Water birch has similar characteristics such as horizontal stripes which are actually pores called lenticels that help it take up oxygen when its roots are wet.

For this reason scrub birch can sometimes be mistaken for cherry because they have very similar smooth bark with horizontal lenticels.

Dwarf (swamp) birch has more dot shaped lenticels that are scattered like freckles on its tiny branches.

Older or dying birch often form symbiotic relationships with the mycorrhizal network in the soil and become hosts for all sorts of fungi which can be found on their bark.

All birch naturally grow very upright in clumps of many trees.

Mature trees have dark colored branches reaching out and upwards towards the canopy.

Modern cultivation & usage:

Before 1997 the forestry industry considered birch a weed, despite its fast growth and valuable wood however that has now changed and the species is now being managed and sometimes is cultivated and planted.

Today birch is recognized as a valuable hardwood used for veneer, pulpwood and firewood.

Hopefully we will see birch cultivation increase in the coming years because it has huge potential to provide value to both our ecosystem and as a wood product due to its short-rotation intensive forestry because of its productivity, easy regeneration, and the fact that it has few serious damaging agents.

Ethical harvesting practice:

Trees for tapping should be mature, healthy and have a diameter of at least 8 inches. It is also a good idea to choose trees with a wide canopy that is some distance from other trees.

Follow the rule of 3 and tap trees that are growing in groups. Do not risk killing the only tree in a struggling ecosystem.

Birch bark for starting fires can often be found on the forest floor.

To harvest birch bark for crafting look for a local guide to show you. Trees can be irreversibly scarred from taking bark from the second layer.

Join our Medicine Makers:

There is even more to see behind this paywall!

To learn more in-depth knowledge about the uses of this plant and how to prepare it join my Medicine Makers Membership and login to view how to make medicine for this and all the plants on my website.

I teach you how to make plant medicines from the plants right outside our doors.

I’d love to hear about your experiences with this plant.
Visit my Instagram page and look for my post about working with this plant and share your experiences with me.

To learn more about what lives in your local ecosystem join my Thompson Bird Lovers email list where I write about a commonly found local bird each week.

We share this knowledge freely and your support really makes a difference.
If you’ve been reading for a while consider donating.
Your donations help us keep this work free for all.